Jadeveon Clowney and Aaron Donald promised to dominate and they did. Michael Sam was expected to struggle and he did.

The surprises came in linebackers Jordan Tripp and Kevin Pierre-Louis. Tripp was impressive in positional drills and speed and agility workouts. The linebacker out of Montana was expected to be a third- or fourth-round pick, and he did nothing to dissuade teams from picking him in the second day. Pierre-Louis will likely rise from his late-round projection.

It’s unfortunate that Ohio State linebacker Ryan Shazier chose not to run. He posted amazing times in every other drill. It’s hard to believe he wouldn’t have run a great 40-yard dash, as well.

The cornerbacks and safeties will work out tomorrow, then the combine is over.

4:23 p.m.: Before the three-cone and short shuttle times come out, Khalil Mack did a nice job of setting himself apart from Anthony Barr from an athletic perspective.

Barr ran a 4.66-second 40-yard dash with a 1.56-second 10-yard split while Barr ran a 4.65-second 40-yard dash with a 1.56-second 10-yard split. Those are almost identical. But Barr broad jumped 9-foot-11 with a 34.5-inch vertical leap while Mack broad jumped 10-foot-8 with a 40-inch vertical. Barr was supposed to be the most athletic player. So far, that’s not the case.

3:12 p.m.: The on-field drills are done for now, but our work is not done here on the live blog. We still have three-cone, short shuttle, broad jump and vertical leap numbers coming for linebackers, and short shuttle times coming for defensive linemen.

3:06 p.m.: The three-cone times have been released for the defensive linemen.

2:46 p.m.: Buffalo linebacker Khalil Mack might not be hurting himself, but he’s also not doing a tremendous job helping his draft stock at the combine.

He’s a lesser Von Miller, which would usually be fine for the No. 1 pick in the draft, but this is such a good draft that it probably won’t happen. Mike Mayock has been pounding the table for him to go No. 1.

At this point, it’s probably going to come down to Clowney, one of the quarterbacks or one of the left tackles. Those are the elite players in this class.

2:37 p.m.: Florida State linebacker Telvin Smith is impressing this afternoon. His game is reminiscent of Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker LaVonte David. He was an undersized linebacker who wasn’t as athletic as Smith.

Pierre-Louis should vault up draft boards, as well. Weakside linebackers who can run and cover are rare in the NFL.

2:34 p.m.: The top 10 official 40-yard dash times for the linebackers have been released.

10:51 a.m.: Auburn defensive end Dee Ford called Jadeveon Clowney a “blind dog in a meat market.” He was asked about his comments and said Clowney has all the athleticism, but he “can’t find the meat.”

Clowney only had three sacks in 2013, but he had no problem finding the meat in 2012. Clowney had 13 sacks that season. Ford had 10.5 sacks in 2013.

10:40 a.m.: Aaron Donald might wind up being the real breakout star of the combine. He’s a freak athletically. The only thing keeping him from being a top five pick is his lack of ideal size. At 6-foot-1, 285 pounds, he’s undersized for a three-technique, pass-rushing defensive tackle, but he had elite production in college. His 4.65-second 40-yard dash can only help his draft stock.

10:30 a.m.: NFL Network is reporting that Clowney has a tight hip flexor. That’s what’s keeping him out of agility and positional drills.

10:29 a.m.: Warren Sapp just jokingly slipped by saying “Willie, there’s something in the steroids … uh … um … something in the milk … Because these kids are way bigger.”

He might get in trouble for that comment.

10:20 a.m.: Mike Mayock has ripped Clowney all week at the combine. Because Clowney’s not participating in position drills, it’s giving him another chance to question his dedication.

Quite frankly, there’s no reason to see Clowney in the positional drills. Everything there is on tape. Of course, there’s probably no reason for Clowney not to do these drills, too.

10:17 a.m.: We know why Auburn’s Dee Ford was not allowed to run or participate.
[tweet https://twitter.com/wyche89/status/437959690786320384 align=center]

It’s a little odd that Ford was able to practice and play in the Senior Bowl, and train for the combine — probably running hundreds of 40-yard dashes over the past three months — but now he’s not allowed to run because of a procedure in 2011. It seems a bit unfair.

10:11 a.m.: It appears Clowney will not compete in positional drills either.

So far Penn State’s DaQuan Jones and Florida State’s Timmy Jernigan are impressing with their agility in the drills.

10:04 a.m.: Clowney will not compete in the three-cone or short shuttle. He will do the broad jump and vertical leap, however.

9:58 a.m.: The first group of offensive linemen are done running. Clowney’s 4.47 was obviously insane, but 285-pound Aaron Donald’s 4.65 was just as crazy. Both of those players will likely be gone by the time the Patriots are picking at No. 29.

The players the Patriots have a better shot at are Kony Ealy (4.84), Ra’Shede Hageman (4.97) and Timmy Jernigan (4.93). Ealy is a defensive end, Hageman is an interior rusher and Jernigan is a nose tackle/interior rusher. He could probably play both roles.

While we wait for the second group of defensive linemen to run, I’ll give analysis on the positional drills.

9:56 a.m.: The first attempt at the 40-yard dash for defensive linemen is over. We’ll track the second runs as they come.

DT Jay Bromley, Syracuse: 4.93, 5.13

DT Ryan Carrethers, Arkansas State: 5.44, 5.50

DE Will Clarke, West Virginia: 4.72, 4.75

DE Jadeveon Clowney, South Carolina: 4.47, 4.48

DT DeAndre Coleman, Cal: 4.78, didn’t show second attempt

Coleman’s a freak to run a 40-yard dash at 4.78 second at 314 pounds.

DE Scott Crichton, Oregon State: 4.78, 4.82

DT Aaron Donald, Pittsburgh: 4.65, 4.66

DE Kony Ealy, Missouri: 4.84, 4.84

DE Kasim Edebali, Boston College: 4.69

DT Justin Ellis, Louisiana Tech: 5.15, 5.12

DE IK Enemkpali, Louisiana Tech: 4.90

DE James Gayle, Virginia Tech: 4.65, 4.60

DT Ra’Shede Hageman, Minnesota: 4.97, 5.02

DT Kerry Hyder, Texas Tech: 4.97

DE Jackson Jeffcoat, Texas: 4.60

DT Timmy Jernigan, Florida State: 5.09, 4.93

DT Anthony Johnson, LSU: 5.25, 5.25

DT DaQuan Jones, Penn State: 5.28, 5.34

DE Howard Jones, Shepherd: 4.60, 4.57

DT Zach Kerr, Delaware: 5.07, 5.03

DE Demarcus Lawrence: 4.72, 4.81

DT Eathyn Manumaleuna, BYU: 5.20, 5.15

DE Cassius Marsh, UCLA: 4.89, 4.89

9:32 a.m.: The defensive linemen are getting set to run. South Carolina’s Jadeveon Clowney and Pittsburgh’s Aaron Donald are players to watch early. Donald weighed in at 285 pounds and he could run in the 4.7s.

Both of those drills are important for running backs because it measures agility, bend and footwork. Sankey’s not the biggest back at 5-foot-9, 209 pounds, so he’ll need that change-of-direction.

8 a.m. ET: The pass rushers will be at center stage on Day 5 of the 2014 NFL Scouting Combine.

The defensive linemen and linebackers are set to workout and compete in positional drills. South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, UCLA outside linebacker Anthony Barr and Buffalo outside linebacker Khalil Mack are the premier players working out on Monday. Clowney said on Saturday that he wants to run a 4.4-second 40-yard dash. At 6-foot-5, 266 pounds, that would be uncanny.

Barr could also run in the 4.4 or 4.5 range at 6-foot-5, 255 pounds. NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock has said he would take Mack No. 1 overall if he was the Houston Texans.

New England Patriots fans should pay attention to some of the top defensive tackles, like Notre Dame’s Louis Nix and Stephon Tuitt, Minnesota’s Ra’Shede Hageman, Florida State’s Timmy Jernigan and Pittsburgh’s Aaron Donald. It’s still unclear how those five players will fall off the draft board in May.

The Patriots could also look to take a pass rusher like Missouri’s Kony Easy, or even Michael Sam, who drew the biggest crowds at the combine as he spoke publicly for the first time since coming out as gay.

The action kicks off at 9 a.m. Stay here for every 40-yard dash from every prospect.